Ruby Sucks
by Green Mashed Potatos
Summary: Leah, Richard, and Carlos are a family living in the Walking Dead universe. All Leah wants in life is to keep her family intact, but Scarlett makes that really hard.


The trees around them were creaking and Leah snuggled closer to her husband Richard. It was hard not to be scared these days, with the whole world gone to hell. Especially tonight, where they had been unable to find shelter before the sun went down. Richard's arms pulled her closer to his chest and she couldn't help but smile. He'd always been a cute sleeper and it felt like a lifetime since she had seen him relax enough to drift off. Carefully, she shifted so that she could be the one doing most of the cradling, and she thanked her lucky stars that he could take just a few hours off watch duty to really rest.

At some point during the night the temperature had dropped and it was much cooler. She was sure if it wasn't so dark she would be able to see her breath. She felt a pang of longing for her bed back at her and Richard's bungalow. She missed her duck feather duvet and Egyptian cotton sheets. Shifting on the hard packed earth she felt a million miles away from any luxury at all. _We're together though,_ she reminded herself. And that was a heck of a lot more than most people could say.

Suddenly there was a loud noise and she jumped slightly. Her eyes darted around the woods surrounding her and she searched the shadows for any sign of trouble. She listened hard and when the noise came again she recognized it immediately. Carefully she slid out from under Richard and propped his head up on her backpack. Pushing herself to her feet she moved quickly towards the sound which incidentally was further away from the fire. Wrapped her arms around herself she huffed. "Jeeze, Scarlett, are you tryin' to attract every damn walker for miles?"

Rounding the corner she spotted Scarlett sitting on a log, her lanky arms draped over her guitar, her fingers picking out chords. Leah jogged over to the lead singer of their band and placed her fingers on the strings, successfully stemming the vibrations. "Did you hear me?" She asked, crouching down in front of Scarlett. She sighed and carefully peeled the guitar out of her hands. She sighed again, taking the other woman's chin in one hand. She tilted her head back and there was just enough light coming over her shoulder to illuminate the white powder that was crested around her nose. "Where the hell did you get that?"

When she didn't get a response Leah released Scarlett's face, "Not to mention Richard and Carlos are sleepin'."

Scarlett leered at her and spat, "I can do whatever I god damn well please. Fuck off bitch."

Looking up Leah willed herself to stay calm, but someone could only take so much abuse. Scarlett had always been the leader, ever since they were thirteen and decided that they wanted to be famous. They had started the band Ruby Sucks, named after a girl in their school named Ruby who was a slut and slept with other people's boyfriends. In the end Scarlett seemed to become the exact same thing as Ruby. She had slept with several peoples husband's, and was always trying to steal Richard from her.

She had gone so far as to try to make Carlos hate his own mother, by acting like a cool aunt with Leah's son.

Stepping back Leah spoke as soothingly as possible, "I would just really appreciate if you'd wait till mornin'. Alright?"

Scarlett scoffed and stumbled away back towards the fire.

Leah sighed and slowly made her way back over to her husband and son. The rest of the night was uneventful, but Leah couldn't sleep. She couldn't get it out of her mind how Scarlett always got what she wanted, and right now, what she wanted was Richard.

Leah sat up and watched her ten-year-old son sleeping, his head resting on her husband's thigh. A sad smile crept across her face. The world had changed so much, and it was beginning to show, not just in her husband, but in her young son too. He had seen his own father shoot his best friend, and in turn Carlos had to shoot that best friend once again when he became a walker.

Leah had only ever wanted the best for her family, now that didn't mean fancy cars, or expensive trips, it was just being there for each other. At the end of the day, even Leah couldn't stop this world from ruining her son. However, she could try to protect her family from Scarlett, and all that she wanted to ruin.


End file.
